Training of Occupational Therapists in Assistance Technology.

2007

Over the last several decades, theree has been increase in federal legislation that promotes greater use of assistive technology for children with disabilities. Concurrent with this policy change, there has been an explosion of new, more sophisticated assistive technology devices available to individuals with special needs. The training of providers currently working with children who need assistive technology devices or services has not kept pace with these changes. This paper reports on a national survey mailed to pediatric occupational therapists. A random sample from the American Occupational Therapy Association's membership lists were asked about their training needs in the area of assistive technology and delivering assistive technology services and 272 pediatric occupational therapists responded. A group of pediatric occupational therapists reported less than adequate training in policies governing assistive technology services and the organization and function of the service system. The therapists would like training that is accessible and affordable in the areas of funding of technology and sevices, collaborating with families and other service providers and accessing reliable, knowledge vendors. These findings underscore the need to develop pre-service and in-service training in assistive technology for providers working with children who have disabilities.

Peer-reviewed publications in scholarly journals Published/In Press

Professionals

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